I would take Bo Pelini over most of the candidates mentioned. If we can't get JH go for Bo.

if harbaugh, Mullen, or stoops don't come here, it's really going to be hard to be optimistic about Michigan football as long as meyer is at OSU.

I can't buy that Hackett hasn't gotten a yes or no answer yet from Harbaugh.  I'd believe it if it were DB or Matin, but Hackett would've asked straight up and moved on of the response was "No" even "I'll know in three weeks" (which is just as good as a No on this situation).

that everything is going to fall through and Michigan is going to strike out on Harbaugh, Miles, Stoops, Mullen, and every other viable coaching candidate.

They may not end up with Steve Addazio, but really it wouldn't shock me. Meanwhile OSU is on the brink of a national championship with their 50 year old coach. Who rode his 2nd and 3rd string QBs to a B1G championship behind an offensive line as young as Michigan's. And is 3-0 against Michigan at OSU.

OSU went out and got their big-name hire, Alabama went out and got their big-name hire, and look where they are now. If/when Michigan strikes out and we're wallowing in despair 5 years from now, with an 8-game losing streak to OSU, that's all you'll need to say to understand why.

It's amazing how hard it seems to be for the winningest football team in the country to hire a Big Time Coach.
I would love to have a coach who will really focus on how to beat Ohio State, like Schembechler. If you can figure out how to beat Ohio, you'll win a lot of other games too.

The mediocre recruiting history at MSU is an excellent argument for his coaching chops, and it explains why he should be desirable to a school like Michigan.  However, it is not sufficient reason for him to leave.

1.  There is a precedent of acceptance. Many head coaches are willing to live with lesser recruiting rankings.  Examples:  Belloti and Kelly didn't bail at Oregon.  Briles and Patterson have always lost elite in-state prospects to Texas, Oklahoma, TAMU, just as MSU will lose elite guys to other SEC powers. Riley turned down USC and all it's prestige to scour rural Oregan for serviceable parts.  Rodriguez turned down Alabama.  Schiano turned down Michigan.  (There is an even longer list of examples who DO leave for better talent but that brings me to the next point.)

2. MSU's recruiting profile is upwardly mobile.  It's an SEC school, with elite facilities (as of last year), an elite coach, and it's starting to win.  That last point is critical.  Winning on the field leads to winning on the recruiting trail.  Look at the talent Oregon got in the 90s and 00s compared to now.  Look at how many top 50 in-state recruits Baylor got a decade ago compared to now.  MSU can easily pull from Florida, Louisiana, Georgia and Texas and we've seen what Ole Miss can do in recruiting. 

3.  Recruiting rankings matter, but they aren't a full picture. The whole SEC-style of recruiting allows Mullen to use JUCOs and supports larger class sizes and gray-shirt shenanigans, not to mention minimal academic expectations.  These things can bleed into recruiting rankings (as many suggested they did for Thomas Rawls.)

4.  Recruiting is easier.  MSU may not have the upside that Michigan does, but Mullen can land solid talent without ever boarding a plane.  He and his staff don't have fly to California and Florida and New Jersey and Arizona and Washington to fill out their recruiting classes.  This takes a ton of time that can be spent in other ways. (film room, family, you name it.)

5. His current recruiting class is ranked in the top 20, better than Michigans. (This really goes to point 2, but it's proof that it's already happening, right now.)

6.Recruiting bias.  Kids that go to big name schools often get a bump, so their classes are probably overrated by at least some small amount.  Furthermore, you can make a strong case that a bunch of athletic 3-star southerners are better than 4-star midwesterners.  MSU put a whoopin on Michigan's 4-star talent back when we had the PAC12 coach of the year on our sideline.

------

I'm not saying Mullen is better off recruiting at MSU than Michigan, but he could be down the line.  The point is, recruiting is not enough to overcome all the other reasons for him to stick at MSU. 

"Geno Smith definitely has what it takes to become a solid player for New York one day. In fact, I could even see him leading Gang Green to a winning season in 2014."

Brian,

I really just want to hear your odds on JH coming here. Sam Webb and others don't really have my trust/respect like you and your site does. Will you please give us your personal opinion in terms of percentage probability?

Most people don't want him as Michigan coach, BUT I do think he would do a surprisingly great job.

I'd take Mullen in a hot second if Harbaugh says no.

A few things:

 

1) As others have said, people need to stop freaking out about Schiano.  There have been ZERO alleged sources from inside Michigan saying they are looking at him as a candidate.  All the leaks have been in the context of Schiano being interested & floating his own name.  All the interest is coming from his end, not Michigan's.

 

2)  Based on people's behavior, it seems at the minimum, Harbaugh has not given Hackett a clear 'no' at this point.  Otherwise the leaks and rumors would have picked up steam in another direction and away from Harbaugh.  Hackett has no interest in letting the UofM fan base thinking they've got a chance with Harbaugh for weeks on end and then letting them down later on, if in fact he knows it's a no-go at this point.  If he wants to make a splash, the smart play (if he knew Harbaugh was a no), at this point would be to let the wind out of the sails now for a week or two, then pump up the rumor mill again with a solid #2 pick for a week or two for folks to start getting excited again.

 

3) Not only do people need to consider the reporter/mouthpiece (i.e. whether the analysits or reporter is any good generaly), but to also consider the reliability of the sources in context  For example, if media analyist X says that somebody from Michigan's camp says ABC---is that analyist X known for having solid connections to Michigan's camp?  That analyist coudl have great NFL contacts, an could be viewed as a good reporter generally, but if they are indicating their sources is coming from a place where they do not have traditional connections, you've got to consider the quality there.  

 

So really it's a two step process:  1)  Is this reporter a hack generally?  And if not, 2) are they sufficiently labeling where their source came from generally, and is that reporter known for having solid sources from that angle?  I'm much more likely to trust somebody reporting on what the Michigan AD department thinks, who is traditionally on the Michigan sports beat and is always hanging out around Schembechler Hall, rather than listsen to some guy with NFL sources camped out with the Oakland Raiders or New York Jets.  So for example, this mornign when I see CBS or other NFL sources saying "Michigan has said they contacted Harbaugh and left discouraged" or some such thing---why would Michigan people leak to the NFL or CBS?  They'd be much more likely to leak to a local Detroit media/Michigan sports reporter.  On the flip side, if I hear reports about Harbaugh discussing things w/ the Raiders or Jets, I'm going to doubt the veracity of that if it's coming from a Michigan/Detroit based local sports reporter, whereas if it's a reporter on the Raiders or Jets NFL beat, I'm more likely to buy that.

Got to remember what Hackett said in his PC, be patient.  

As far as Schiano, I doubt he is even in a swim lane. 

December 29, Monday after the last 49er game.  

Thanks, Brian! for the rare Sunday front page news. I honestly had a dream last night of the MGoBlog front page post announcing Harbaugh as our next coach. Either (1) a premonition or (2) a sign that I'm spending way too much time reading MGoBlog and thinking about Jim Harbaugh! Even my iPhone autocorrect recognizes "Harbaugh" now!

I couldn't be more confident with the way things are proceeding right now with this search. I believe that Hackett is executing a precise and masterful plan. First, he has lined up everything right now to ensure that M has everything in place so that JH is not disuaded by anything from the M camp. Everybody from M is lined up behind JH and unified. The Carr comment, the Van Bergen letter, the discussions with both the current and former players, the crackdown on all leaks, and even lining up the financing and donors, particularly Ross, behind the pursuit of JH. All of this does not mean that JH will decide to come to M in the end, but if that is the call it is due to his own personal reasons, and no disunity or mistakes on the M end. Second, he is conducting a thorough search of all other candidates via the firm. From all the other input we are getting, it is clear that the initial feelers have gone out across the country to the Pattersons, Moras, Mullens, and Stoops of the world. Does not mean that any of them will reall want to come, or that any of them are "front runners." If JH says no, the groundwork is completely laid to understand where to go next. Given the lack of demand in the college ranks, and JH's current employment situation, Hackett can afford to be measured and thorough. There is no reason to panic at this point. There is no reason to assume any front runner. Coaches like Schiano and Addazio will want to pump up the rumors in their favor, obviously. We will know a lot more in the middle of this week. If we do not have a college coach on board, we will know we are waiting for a JH decision, or are waiting for him to close up shop with his old job.

Plan A: is of course pursue Harbaugh to the end! Hopefully he will say NO or YES when his season is over.

Plan B: Any one of the following will be a good hire for Michigan. Miles, Mullen or Bob Stoops, or another successful D-1 coach we can pry away. We need one of the plan B guys if Harbaugh says NO!

Plan C: I don't see one. I think if we end up with a Schiano type coach, our football program will be awful for years and every year we will be asking Jim to be our coach!

This is going to be torture. On one hand, the constant reports of my mailman's brother's wife's cousin's babysitter's nephew's grandmother's second husband's step-son who works in the NFL says Harbaugh will say_______ to Michigan are getting old. On the other hand, the longer we don't hear anything, isn't that a good sign? It only takes a second to say, "no.". But in the back of my head, I keep having this nagging feeling (as if the last 7 years wasn't proof enough) that Michigan isn't allowed to have nice things. So get rid of the pipe dream.

Was it because the oddmakers could not handle all the bets quickly enough?  One link suggested that rather it was because the influx of money suggested insider information.

FWIW

"Carrie Stroup here with an urgent betting alert from Gambling911.com regarding Jim Harbaugh 2015 Coaching odds and the Michigan Wolverines. 

“We have been advised by Sportsbook.ag that all bets on Harbaugh’s future have been suspended due to an unusual betting pattern suggesting inside information on the 49ers head coach taking over the Michigan Wolverines program.

“We suspended Jim Harbaugh 2015 coaching odds as money came pouring in on Michigan late yesterday afternoon,” advised Matt James of Sportsbook.ag.  “The odds went from 8-1 all the way down to 2-1, before we closed the event.
“What was even more concerning than the money was the location of the accounts betting Michigan, as the majority of them located in the state of Michigan!”

I would be curious to know when/if the betting resumes, where the odds settle.,  A lot of information that is publicized could be designed to alter those odds--even if temporarily--in order to profit from the spread.

Unlike the Mean Streak. this coaching search won't have only a 10 minute wait time.

Charles just intercepted S.F. to seal a Raiders victory...

Don't stop ... 'Baughlieving!!!